Throughout history, very few Irish surnames have exclusively maintained their original forms. Before being translated into English, Hennaghent appeared as O Dubhain, where the first portion of the word is dubh, which means black, and the second portion is probably derived from some obsolete Irish personal name.

Hennaghent Early Origins

The surname Hennaghent was first found in County Sligo (Irish: Sligeach), in the province of Connacht in Northwestern Ireland, from very ancient times.

Hennaghent Spelling Variations

Hennaghent Spelling Variations

Those scribes in Ireland during the Middle Ages recorded names as they sounded. Consequently, in this era many people were recorded under different spellings each time their name was written down. Research on the Hennaghent family name revealed numerous spelling variations, including Downs, Down, Downe, Downes and others.

Hennaghent Early History

Hennaghent Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hennaghent research. Another 379 words (27 lines of text) covering the years 1612, 1679, 1675, 1549, 1628, 1735, 1727, 1735, 1724, 1727, 1720, 1724, 1717 and 1720 are included under the topic Early Hennaghent History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hennaghent Early Notables (pre 1700)

Hennaghent Early Notables (pre 1700)

Notable among the family name at this time was William Ducie ( c. 1612-1679), created 1st Viscount Downe in 1675; Andrew Downes, also known as Dounaeus, (c.1549-1628), English classical scholar, one of the seven translators of the...

Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Hennaghent Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

The Great Migration

During the 19th century thousands of impoverished Irish families made the long journey to British North America and the United States. These people were leaving a land that had become beset with poverty, lack of opportunity, and hunger. In North America, they hoped to find land, work, and political and religious freedoms. Although the majority of the immigrants that survived the long sea passage did make these discoveries, it was not without much perseverance and hard work: by the mid-19th century land suitable for agriculture was short supply, especially in British North America, in the east; the work available was generally low paying and physically taxing construction or factory work; and the English stereotypes concerning the Irish, although less frequent and vehement, were, nevertheless, present in the land of freedom, liberty, and equality for all men. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Research into passenger and immigration lists has brought forth evidence of the early members of the Hennaghent family in North America: Jane Downe who settled in Jamaica in 1685; John Downe settled in Barbados in 1685; another John Downe settled in Virginia in 1670; Robert Downe settled in St. Christopher in 1635.

Skordas, Guest. Ed. The Early Settlers of Maryland an Index to Names or Immigrants Complied from Records of Land Patents 1633-1680 in the Hall of Records Annapolis, Maryland. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1992. Print.

The Hennaghent Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Hennaghent Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.